GIFT Missionary The missionaries of the Gift of Mary GIFT Program spend their mission year in prayer and service to the poor within the context of the Gift of Mary Women’s Shelter. Gift of Mary is a shelter for homeless women in downtown Pittsburgh specifically built to help women in emergency situations due to domestic violence and human trafficking. Gift of Mary meets women where they are at, providing an atmosphere that receives them with dignity and love, and giving them resources to improve their situations so they do not have to go back to abusive situations. The missionaries with Gift of Mary strive to always see Christ in the Poor, and to treat the women we serve with the utmost respect and gentleness. Missionaries assist the mission of Gift of Mary through a ministry of presence and evangelization to the poor. This includes:
Meeting and coming to know the homeless of Pittsburgh
Receiving vulnerable women in crisis
Leading the intake process for the Gift of Mary shelter
Overseeing volunteers for Gift of Mary Shelter
Teaching shelter guests how to pray the rosary, read the Bible, go to mass, and pray the liturgy of the hours
Moving homeless women into rehab programs, transitional housing, or other housing options to get them into better situations.
A regular ministry of presence - learning the stories of the women we serve and building up their dignity by being willing to listen to them.
Overseeing Gift of Mary Day Center
Shelter hospitality - cleaning the shelter during the day, making beds for the women we serve, praying for the women while we clean the shelter
The life of GIFT Missionaries is structured with the intention of creating an atmosphere of prayer, community life, and discernment. The GIFT Program is modeled after Mary’s own Fiat, and missionaries spend the year listening to God’s voice while serving the poor, with the goal of saying “yes” to God in whatever He might be asking of them for their lives. This could include the discernment of one’s main vocation in life such as religious life or marriage, or a direction for one’s career or “personal vocation”. The main drive of our year of prayer and surrender is to listen to God’s voice and say yes to anything He says. Regular missionary commitments include:
Daily Mass
Daily Holy Hour
Daily Rosary
Daily Morning & Evening Prayer
Weekly Formation Meetings on topics such as Discernment of Spirits, Healing the Whole
Community nights - regular intentional time to be with other missionaries in community
Compensation and Benefits
Missionaries fundraise a minimum of $8,000 for the missionary year. A fundraising coach is available to assist with fundraising efforts. Missionaries who need to fundraise more due to financial need are assisted with doing so.
Missionaries receive a $500 stipend each month
Housing, Utilities, and Groceries are provided by the mission
Days Off: Missionaries get 12 PTO Days off during the year and 4 “Formation Days” - “Formation Days” are days provided for missionaries to do something conducive to their own discernment. These days could be used to go to a Catholic Conference, a Come and See Event, a retreat, or something else a missionary feels would help them respond to God’s personal call for their lives.
Retreats: Missionaries go on four main retreats during the year, including a four-day silent retreat in the spring.
Community Life: Missionaries live together, pray together, and create a supportive atmosphere for each other, truly coming to see one another as “family” during the mission year
Rule of Life: The mission year helps missionaries commit more intentionally to their spiritual lives by providing a structured life of prayer, formation, and spiritual direction.
Requirements:
Desire to Serve the Poor
Wholehearted commitment to living out one’s Catholic faith
Willingness to listen to God’s voice and follow Him wherever He goes
To Inquire about becoming a missionary, please contact Brookelynne Schnurpel: [email protected] 317-457-4992 www.giftofmary.org